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harp (härp)
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n.
1. Music
a. An instrument having an upright triangular frame consisting of a pillar, a curved neck, and a hollow back containing the sounding board, with usually 46 or 47 strings of graded lengths that are played by plucking with the fingers.
b. Any of various ancient and modern instruments of similar or U-shaped design.
c. Informal A harmonica.
2. Something, such as a pair of vertical supports for a lampshade, that resembles a harp.
intr.v. harped, harp·ing, harps
To play a harp.
Phrasal Verb:
harp on
To talk or write about to an excessive and tedious degree; dwell on.

[Middle English, from Old English hearpe and from Old French harpe, of Germanic origin.]

harpern.
harpistn.
(click for a larger image)
(click for a larger image)
harp
top: Welsh harpist Eluned Pierce
bottom: lamp harp

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.